002 ♛ video

[superieure]

[ Monet is seated, one leg crossed over the other, arms folded, lips curled into a smile, immaculately dressed as always, regarding the camera with a critical eye. In front of her is a chessboard, all set out for a game. She’s chosen black, so white faces the viewer. ]

I require an opponent.

Comments

[pikes]

[ It's easy to figure out that Pike doesn't play to win. His mind is a maze of strategy and tactics, always has been, and right now, he employs on the board to function as his way to read his opponent's movements, but he, surprisingly, usually just wings it as if he can't be bothered to think it. Surface thoughts include a calm void, stars drifting in the space, and the pain in his leg that is by now more like a veteran's old wound, a lingering pain that he's masterfully endures without missing a beat.

Chess is not a way for him to win, but to get to know better the person sitting opposite him, determine if they are friend or foe or nothing more than a satisfying chess opponent. Usually, he's satisfied with a draw, aims for it, even. Pike has his own opinions on what a no-win scenario holds, after all.

It doesn't mean, of course, that he can't, or that he's not giving her a run for her money. He's simply at that stage where he's gauging her skill. ]

How long have you been playing the game?

[superieure]

[A chess game is the ultimate test for a telepath, and Monet is not only uninterested in her opponent's thoughts, she's actively blocking them so she receives no feedback at all. What would be the point, when they're thinking about moves, countermoves, strategies for now and later? She is, however, peripherally aware of the leg, as something about the way he holds himself is subtly incongruent with one his age.]

[She hates boring. She plays to win (maybe it's because she's still young and the entire world is her oyster) forward and aggressive as demonstrated by the way her pieces dart around the board. She's meticulous, sure, but this is a new opponent and they haven't settled into a steady rhythm of backs and forths.]

Since I was a child. [Emma Frost hadn't taught her, but Professor Xavier had suggested it, and Monet could never turn down a good challenge.] And yourself, Monsieur?